


The Night Before the Night Before

by DisMoi



Category: Last Tango In Halifax
Genre: Burberry scarves rule, Caroline/Kate, F/F, Gifts are meant to be unwrapped, If one scarf is good then two must be better, Kate greeting Caroline just inside the front door, Kate/Caroline, Oh the weather outside is frightful but the fire is so delightful, Red velvet is made for low cut dresses not cake
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 08:13:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28468080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DisMoi/pseuds/DisMoi
Summary: With the all the family obligations the holidays bring barreling down on them, Kate orchestrates a rare night alone with Caroline. What better way is there to celebrate the impending anniversary of their reunion at Celia and Alan's wedding than with a cozy fire, a flute of champagne, and no distractions?
Relationships: Kate McKenzie & Caroline McKenzie-Dawson
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	The Night Before the Night Before

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Katie Dingo](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Katie+Dingo).



In her early days at Sulgrave Heath, there were many things about the bossy head teacher that drove Kate crazy.

Initially, it was her laser like focus that saw everything. It was a topic of discussion that started on Kate’s first day in the teacher’s lounge when one of the veteran teachers blurted it out, almost like a warning. A day never went by that someone didn’t remark how she had eyes in the back of her head. Kate often wondered if the other teachers found those beautiful eyes as blue and as easy to get lost in.

Then there was her impeccable timing. She always knew the exact second to enter a room, catching Kate in an embarrassing situation trying to get an unruly student or a classroom full of them under control. As much as the students at her last school were a challenge, there were some in her 9F class who were even more precocious. As soon as the kids in her other classes even spotted the head teacher’s face outside the classroom they would instantly sit up straight in their seats and try to appear as angelic as possible. But not 9F; they often wouldn’t be fully corralled until Caroline was in the room, using her loudest head teacher voice. She wondered what voice she used in the bedroom; was it just as commanding or was it breathless and seductively responsive instead.

As the years rolled on, Kate realised how Caroline seemed to know so much about so many things, and that drove Kate completely crazy. On the rare occasions when she popped into the teachers’ lounge, she would usually join into the conversation, regardless of the topic, and always seemed to be in the know. Even if the subject turned to music, she’d always have something pertinent to add. Kate couldn’t fathom how she had the time to run the school and yet have what appeared to be a well-rounded life outside of it, and she’d spent many hours wondering what music Caroline liked in the bedroom.

Above all else, what drove her the craziest was how Caroline was always so well put together. For the life of her, she could never understand how the head teacher’s skirts and shirts never looked wrinkled, even by the end of the day, and how her eyeliner always looked pristine, like it had just been applied. Kate’s eyeliner always smeared, sometimes even before getting out of her car outside the school, and her eye shadow usually disappeared before noon. She was always a little embarrassed to have her boss see her looking a little worse for the wear. Kate wondered if Caroline was a little like a naughty librarian, once the glasses came off and the hair was let down there was a real siren ready to come out to play. Since she rarely wore her hair up, Kate instead envisioned her slowly pulling her scarf off to reveal the most enticing cleavage. No, it was definitely those bloody scarfs that made her the craziest.

There were times when Kate worried about how much time she spent watching Caroline, daydreaming about slowly removing the scarf du jour, unearthing her luscious cleavage, wondering what the different fabrics would feel like to the touch, how it would puddle when dropped to the floor. She tried never to miss watching her strut down the polished halls in her killer heels and worried about her boss or even other teachers catching on that she had more than a little crush. Kate knew that if she tried to wear shoes like Caroline’s she’d look like a penguin roller skating on glare ice with a ladder in her stockings. Even though she knew she was married to a best-selling author, lived in a beautiful house, had two great kids, and seemingly had a perfect life, Kate was still hopelessly head over heels for her boss. She’d fallen harder for her than a penguin on those skates and didn’t care that anything would ever come from her crush.

Seeing the time on the mantle clock, Kate realised she needed to press on if she was going to have the welcome home she wanted for Caroline. Knowing that the 24th of December was going to be filled with completing the seemingly endless to-do list before entertaining their demanding family, she wanted to make the most of this unexpected quiet night alone with Caroline. Confirming the flue was open, she struck the long matchstick and placed it against the balled-up newspaper tucked into the wood she had so carefully stacked in the fireplace. The flame instantly caught and engaged the fire starter. Pleased with herself, she put the safety screen in place and bounded up the stairs to change clothes.

Having lost track of time, Caroline glanced at her wristwatch. She had another hour worth of work to plough through if she wanted to enjoy a work-free holiday break but she no longer had the attention span for it. Seeing the lateness of the hour, she rose to look out the window. The falling snowflakes were heavier and larger than earlier and the sight of them were the excuse she’d needed to pack it all in for the year. The couple of inches that had already accumulated would be no challenge for her trusty Jeep, but if the heavy snow brought down any big tree limbs or power lines on the road, she would be delayed in getting home and that was the last thing she wanted to risk.

Moving with alacrity, she shut off her computer and desk light, and kicked off her heels and replaced them with her very unsexy snow boots. She hated the look of them but recognised the need for practicalities if she didn’t want to spend her holidays in A&E with a twisted ankle or something worse if she fell.

After tucking her heels into her Mulberry, she quickly put on her coat and scarf and headed out into the elements. She flipped around radio stations looking for some Christmas carols to go with the blinking festive lights she saw as she traversed through the tawny neighbourhood near Sulgrave Heath. As she drove, she went through her mental list of all she had to do before William arrived from Oxford in the morning. She was regretting inviting the extended family to a celebratory anniversary dinner for Celia and Allen; she would have preferred to make just a romantic meal for Kate, but with the kids home, that seemed selfish and unrealistic.

After parking between the Lexus and the Fiat, she looked in her rearview mirror to check her appearance. The thought of the gorgeous, loving woman she’d find beyond the door sent a thrill running through her veins. She smiled at herself, finally excited for a winter break to begin. So often over the years, she’d silently pined for the languages teacher, especially on those cold winter nights when John unceremoniously found the bottom of the closest the liquor bottle and passed out on the couch, leaving her lonely and unfulfilled. She filled the hours with books and anything she could find to keep her from thinking about the relationship she really longed for.

Other years, when she had to play both Mr. and Mrs. Claus to all and sundry, the holidays were just one more obligation to survive. She knew she wouldn’t miss John’s wine-drenched carcass passed out on the settee immediately after Christmas dinner. His uninspired Christmas presents didn’t even make up for his lack of participation in any of the prep and planning. But this year, she knew would be different, despite the massive prep work remaining to be done. This year, she had Kate to make it all worth-while.

Feeling grateful for Kate and Flora, Caroline took one last look at herself in the rearview mirror to see if her eyeliner needed a touch up. Once it was fixed, she freshened her lipstick and carefully stepped down from the Jeep, taking care to not get a ladder in her stockings. She hoped to slip quietly through the front door, but as she reached for the knob, the door opened. There was Kate, in a red velvet dress, grinning at her with the gap in her upper front teeth boldly on display.

Before Caroline could say anything more than ‘hello’, Kate grabbed her by her cashmere scarf and pulled her close for a deep, welcoming kiss. The chill the blonde felt from the swirling snow and cold air in the short walk from her car to the front door her was replaced with a flush from the heat of Kate’s enthusiasm. Caroline dropped her purse and moved to fully embrace Kate, but before she could get a firm grip, Kate let go of her hold on the scarf and slipped her hands under Caroline’s coat, deftly easing it and the matching scarf off her wife’s frame and dropping it to the floor, all the while not breaking their kiss.

Caroline was thrilled by Kate’s surprising welcome. When they finally came up for air, Kate sexily bent over to retrieve the coat, brushing her well-toned rear against Caroline in the process, making Caroline swallow hard and clear her throat to speak.

“Had I known this would be my greeting I would have been home by noon,” she volleyed.

“I’ve been looking forward to your coming home since you left this morning,” Kate replied as smiled at the sight of the blue silk scarf Caroline was wearing with her suit. Only her Caroline would cover one scarf with another. She picked up the ends of it and gently led her to the lounge. After settling Caroline into her favourite seat in front of the fire, Kate told her she’d be back with a surprise for her.

Caroline delighted in watching Kate’s bottom sway as she walked, her heels clicking down the hallway. Seeing Kate in heels for a change, Caroline took off her snow boots and put her feet up on the coffee table, hoping for enough radiant heat from the fireplace to warm them.

Just as she was thinking how quiet the house seemed, she heard one of Kate’s favourite playlists begin piping out from a nearby speaker; it was the playlist Kate always played when she wanted to _play_. It brought a grateful smile to the head teacher who was feeling a little off balance, unsure what Kate was up to. As she waited for her wife to return, she began to wonder where Flora was; this was usually her time to cuddle her youngest before dinner, but she seemed to be nowhere in sight.

Just as she was about to call out to Kate, the vision in red reappeared in the doorway, hands occupied with a tray with small plates of bite-sized nibbles and two flutes of champagne and the opened bottle nestled in an ice bucket.

She started to stand to help Kate with the tray when Kate playfully admonished her. “I told you to stay. I’ve got this. Am I going to have to sit on your lap to make you listen?” Her grin as she spoke belied her tease and before Caroline could respond, Kate gracefully lowered herself onto her lap. Back to her lithe, pre-pregnancy weight, she gave Caroline a kiss that promised more to follow.

“Those look almost as delectable as you,” Caroline said, hungrily eyeing her wife, wondering how long they had until Flora needed their attention. She moved to reach for a miniature quiche but Kate yanked the plate out of her reach, almost sending the contents sliding off it.

“Allow me,” she responded, holding one up in front of Caroline’s lips which parted just enough to receive it while attempting to capture Kate’s fingertips in the process. She placed one in her own mouth before reaching for the glasses of champagne, handing one to Caroline and clinking hers against it.

“What are we drinking to?” Caroline decided to let Kate stay in the lead, rather than risk treading on what appeared to be her well laid plans. At least she hoped she’d be well-laid too by the end of the night.

“To you. To us. To everything. Do you realize that today is the one-year anniversary of my last worthless evening?”

“Sorry. Your last what?” Caroline reached for a toast point with pate and feed it to Kate before trying one herself.

As soon as Kate finished the bite, she took a sip of her champagne and then explained, “It’s a line from a song. You know tomorrow is the anniversary of our reunion at the wedding. Since all the family will be descending in the morning, I thought we’d celebrate tonight instead.” Kate shifted to sit beside Caroline, as much to give her wife’s legs a break as to be in a better position to look in her eyes.

Caroline reached up and moved a lock of hair off Kate’s forehead to tuck it behind her ear. She caressed her cheek as she tenderly pulled Kate in for another kiss. When it ended, Kate leaned her forehead against Caroline’s, remembering their dance at the wedding. Without breaking the connection, Caroline wiped a small tear that was trickling down her cheek.

“You’ve no idea what that night was like for me. I was on needles and pins at the thought of seeing you back in that hotel. All I could think of was how I stuffed it up there months before and wasn’t sure how I’d make it through the wedding, if I’m honest.” Caroline took a sip to stop the lump that was developing in her throat from fully forming. The crisp elixir made her mouth water as the bubbles danced across her palate and down her throat.

“I was equally nervous about being back there, near you. Well that and screwing up your mum’s processional piece,” Kate said. She took a sip too before setting her glass down to free her hands to pick up Caroline’s, stoking them, marvelling at the smoothness of her skin.

“I hate to break this spell, but where’s Flora?”

“Do you want the good news first, or the bad news,” Kate responded.

“What did my mother do now?” Putting two and two together, Caroline felt instantly on edge. She knew Flora had to be fine or Kate wouldn’t be so calm, so it had to have something to do with Celia.

“Well, she popped in when they got back from Halifax. She saw me mixing the biscuit dough for us to bake together tomorrow and went to get your grandmother’s antique gold-leaf plate, saying you always use it to serve the biscuits on Christmas. As she was pulling it out of the cabinet, she dropped it and it broke into pieces. She felt so bad because she knows how much you loved it; she offered to take Flora for the night in recompense.” Kate tried not to let her surprise show. “She actually said we deserved some alone time before the all family arrives tomorrow.”

“You didn’t tell her I chipped it last year when it slipped while I was drying it?” Caroline smirked as she leaned over to select another nibble Kate had so lovingly prepared. She popped a goat cheese stuffed cherry tomato in her mouth, simultaneously feeding one to Kate, her fingers lingering over the soft lips.

“Our first night without Flora?” Caroline studied her wife over the rim of her champagne glass. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

A log on the fire hissed and crackled as the flames curled in and around the small stack of wood, casting shadows on the ceiling.

“I’m so sure that I didn’t correct Celia about that chip,” she mused as she reached for Caroline’s scarf and seductively pulled the silk from around her tantalizingly freckled neck, fluidly dropping on the floor as she leaned in to kiss the newly exposed cleavage. As she did so, she thought about the gift for Caroline she’d hid under the Christmas tree.

Her lips, still humming from the contact with Caroline’s enticing skin and craving more, curled into a smile as she wondered if Caroline would enjoy wearing that new scarf as much as she’d enjoy taking it off of her.

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally written as a Christmas present for Katie Dingo and was never intended to be published. Thanks to a little too much time on my hands after the holidays, and to KD's great Beta skills, it's been expanded a bit. It's only being published because she's a hard gal to say 'no' to. 
> 
> Hope everyone has a healthy and happy 2021. Carpe Diem.


End file.
